Posts

Rookie Dez Bryant was sidelined once again at OTAs, this time due to tightness in his left hamstring.

According to Nick Eatman’s blog at dallascowboys.com:

Since being drafted in late April, Bryant has experienced minor ankle and hip injuries, missed an entire day of OTA practice and meetings with a stomach virus and now the hamstring has kept him out for two practices.

Bryant says its not frustrating, and I’m not sure its time to worry about minor injuries, but it certainly makes one wonder.

***

It was uncovered by running back coach Skip Peete that Marion Barber played last season with a torn left quad. The injury occurred in Week 2 last season and Barber only missed one game.

***

Keith Brooking could return to practice as soon as Thursday after being held out because of offseason arthroscopic knee surgery.

***

Patrick Crayton returned to OTAs yesterday. He agent says Crayton is looking to compete and doesn’t want to be a distraction, its rather hard to do that if you aren’t with the team on the field.

His teammates were happy to see him back with the team.

Kevin Ogletree: “There is a lot more wisdom out there. He has been around a long time. He is just more help for the young guys and more leadership. He is a good player, so obviously we missed him and it’s just good to see him back out there.”

Roy Williams: “He’s not the flashy guy. He is just a guy that comes in and gets the job done. I call him Mr. Consistency. He just plays the same way every time.”

Dez Bryant: “He is a vet. It is nice to have a guy like that. Not only him, but Roy (Williams) and Miles (Austin), who have been through everything. Younger guys (like me) want that. They need someone to follow and it’s great that they are all here.”

***

Training Camp will be split this year between Texas and California. This is great news for our friends on the West Coast who will get a chance to see America’s Team live in action getting ready for the upcoming season.

Since this off-season began I was predicting my home town player Gerald Sensabaugh to join my other home town player Jason Witten in Dallas my friends were saying theres no way Gerald would be a Dallas Cowboy. I debated and argued all the way until that faithful day when the Cowboys signed him. I though my arguments were over but no everywhere I looked it seemed like every Cowboys fan I talked to was doubting what Gerald could do, so I just said wait and see.

Now according to dallascowboys.com writer Mickey Spagnola Sensabaugh is one of Secondary Coach Dave Campo’s favorites. Here is what Mickey’s article said.

You might say for the majority of his years with the Cowboys, Dave Campo, first secondary coach, then defensive coordinator and then head coach before returning as secondary coach in 2008, was spoiled at the safety position. During his previous 14 seasons, he mostly had the likes of Ray Horton, James Washington, Thomas Everett, Darren Woodson, Brock Marion and George Teague back there. He even enjoyed a rather nice rookie season out of Roy Williams.

So last season probably was a little bit of a shellshock for Camps, who returned for a 15th season. Heck, even over his three years as head coach, when Woodson remained healthy, he had Woodson and Teague back there. Injuries and performance made last year somewhat of a crap shoot.

That’s why I said to him, with the addition of Gerald Sensabaugh and all the young guys brought in, this might be the best the safety position has looked since, well, Woodson was playing.

He laughed, saying it was funny I’d bring up Woodson, “because when I got to Jacksonville (2005) I remember saying Sensabaugh (a rookie then) had the kind of burst Woodson had. Now I’m not saying he’s Woodson.”

Of course not, and he’s probably 10 to 15 pounds lighter. But Campo was trying to make a point about Sensabaugh’s ability to cover, not only from the deep safety spot, but also going inside to the weak linebacker spot on the nickel, where Woodson spoiled the Cowboys his entire career with an ability to cover even receivers in the slot.